Our weekly rankings are in!
This was actually a pretty stable week for the ol’ top 20. Most of the teams that should have won did, and while Penn State saw its exit from the list, the number of teams knocking on the door seems to be shrinking. There were also several key teams that sat out this week for various reasons, and that also reduced the odds of an upset.
Public ballots and weekly rankings are nothing without praise and shame, so here is our scoreboard:
Ryan Conwell’s picks aligning with the national poll: 7
Nick Zoroya’s picks aligning with the national poll: 8
Everyone agreeing: 4
If you’d like to see our previous polls, you can find them here:
Week 0 | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5
Key
RC’s Ballot – NZ’s Ballot
National Poll
2021 NCAA DI Men’s Weekly Rankings – Week 6 Top 20
Note: The following are the official Inside Lacrosse Media Poll ballots are from Lacrosse All Stars’ Ryan Conwell and Nick Zoroya.
1 North Carolina (RC) – Duke (NZ)
National Poll: North Carolina (8-0)
RC: Another win, another week as my No. 1.
NZ: Idle
Who else could watch these on repeat? 🤩🥍#FamilyAcademicsLacrosse pic.twitter.com/AETXfDkTwR
— UNC Men's Lacrosse (@UNCMensLacrosse) March 20, 2021
2 Duke (RC) – North Carolina (NZ)
National Poll: Duke (8-0)
RC: A rest week for the Blue Devils prior to their headline game on Thursday against Cuse. This will be their toughest game of the year to date, so we’ll see if those eight games were good preparation or not.
NZ: Beating Air Force like you should will keep you at No. 2.
The wait has been killing us, but it's FINALLY 𝘼𝘾𝘾 𝙒𝙀𝙀𝙆!#GoDuke pic.twitter.com/16jN5ZvBB4
— Duke Men's Lacrosse (@DukeMLAX) March 22, 2021
3 Maryland (RC) – Maryland (NZ)
National Poll: Maryland (5-0)
RC: Doubling up Ohio State was yet another good game from the Terps. It’s going to be tough to see who in the B1G will give them a full four quarters.
NZ: Big Ten cannibalism is in full force. Beating OSU by eight is nice but could be better.
Another top-5 matchup on the horizon this weekend!
— Maryland Lacrosse (@TerpsMLax) March 22, 2021
Rematch vs. the Scarlet Knights in Piscataway on @ESPNU #BeTheBest pic.twitter.com/0z5DbS2dO1
4 Rutgers (RC) – Syracuse (NZ)
National Poll: Syracuse (4-1)
RC: The win by Rutgers over Hop may be “expected,” but you have to remember how much the Jays have been improving. This win was key for Rutgers to maintain some order in the conference.
NZ: Cracked the top four of my weekly rankings with Georgetown losing and a win over Holy Cross.
Fourth in a row ✅
— Syracuse Men’s Lacrosse (@CuseMLAX) March 22, 2021
All eyes on a Thursday night, prime time battle with Duke next. pic.twitter.com/vUvKrrmYXh
5 Army (RC) – Rutgers (NZ)
National Poll: Rutgers (4-1)
RC: A week off for Army, and it still hovers for me.
NZ: Clearly the second-best Big Ten team at the moment after beating JHU in a battle.
Enjoyed our first win over Johns Hopkins since 2016 yesterday at Homewood Field!
— Rutgers Men's LAX (@RUmlax) March 21, 2021
📰: https://t.co/KDxdwgrVDg #RUMLax | #GoRU pic.twitter.com/TdVjaz2712
6 Syracuse (RC) – Notre Dame (NZ)
National Poll: Notre Dame (4-0)
RC: Cuse took a quarter to get going, but once it figured out Holy Cross, it was game over. Now it’s ACC game number two with Duke.
NZ: Another good win for the Irish, and the Georgetown loss means they move up.
Non-Conference: ✅
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) March 22, 2021
Up Next: ACC Play
It's Virginia Week. #GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/unuEWozjUw
7 Denver (RC) – Denver (NZ)
National Poll: Denver (6-2)
RC: Denver moves up to Georgetown’s spot for me.
NZ: Huge win over Georgetown. It seems like Denver is piecing it all together when it counts.
Jack Hannah was FEELING it on Tuesday afternoon.
— Denver Men’s Lacrosse (@DU_MLAX) March 18, 2021
🔥🔥🔥🔥#PioneerTogether pic.twitter.com/mC5KP1a4Vj
8 Notre Dame (RC) – Georgetown (NZ)
National Poll: Army (3-1)
RC: After an expected win, I’m feeling more comfortable about the Irish and moved them ahead of UVA.
NZ: The loss to Denver slides the Hoyas to the spot behind the Pios in my weekly rankings.
We will now be taking on Holy Cross this Saturday at Michie 👊https://t.co/zA8OZh0odq
— Army M.Lacrosse (@ArmyWP_MLax) March 22, 2021
9 Virginia (RC) – Virginia (NZ)
National Poll: Virginia (6-2)
RC: I moved UVA back a spot and put Notre Dame ahead to No. 8. The ‘Hoos are still a top-10 team, just seemingly behind the rest of the ACC right now.
NZ: Losing hope that the Cavs will dial it in. They struggled against Bobby Mo, but then again, who hasn’t.
More #FirstTimeSinceDirt 🥍 Stats:
— Virginia Men's Lacrosse (@UVAMensLax) March 21, 2021
With 23 faceoff wins (28 attempts) yesterday against Robert Morris, Petey LaSalla became the 𝗙𝗜𝗥𝗦𝗧 player in program history to win 20+ faceoffs in back-to-back games. He previously had 21 wins against No. 1 UNC (March 11).#GoHoos pic.twitter.com/SROc4mtL6R
10 Georgetown (RC) – Lehigh (NZ)
National Poll: Lehigh (3-0)
RC: I still feel like Georgetown is one of the best teams out there, but this Denver game definitely exposed it. The moral of the story? You have to be a really good team to beat the Hoyas.
NZ: Idle.
On a per-game basis, here are your top individual EGA performers in D1 MLAX:
— Lacrosse Reference (@laxreference) March 17, 2021
Tierney (@HofstraMLAX): 6.14 EGA/gm
Sisselberger (@LehighLacrosse): 5.90
Hochman (@UMassMLacrosse): 5.76
Wood (@MercerLacrosse): 5.57
Bernhardt (@TerpsMLax): 5.32
11 Lehigh (RC) – Loyola (NZ)
National Poll: Georgetown (5-1)
RC: Bye week for Lehigh means they hovered in my weekly rankings.
NZ: Beating a Bucknell team that you should beat keeps you at No. 11.
Photo creds: @stewmilnephotos
— Georgetown MLacrosse (@HoyasMLacrosse) March 22, 2021
12 Loyola (RC) – Army (NZ)
National Poll: Loyola (4-2)
RC: Loyola had a great win over Bucknell but still stayed put behind Lehigh.
NZ: Idle.
24 goals were too many for 1 📹, but we have plenty of highlights, presented by the @Mdarmyguard!#gohounds #patriotmlax@PatriotLeagueTV pic.twitter.com/fFmhobsJoX
— Loyola Men's Lacrosse (@LoyolaMLAX) March 21, 2021
13 UMass (RC) – UMass (NZ)
National Poll: UMass (2-0)
RC: Understandably, UMass has some rust, but just like last game, it shook it off pretty quickly en route to its win.
NZ: The Minutemen continue to find their footing with a nice victory over Drexel.
Defended the home turf 🔒#GorillaLacrosse 🦍 x #Flagship 🚩 pic.twitter.com/5GV56kavyR
— UMass Men's Lacrosse (@UMassMLacrosse) March 20, 2021
14 Johns Hopkins (RC) – Richmond (NZ)
National Poll: Delaware (6-1)
RC: Even with the loss, I still moved Hopkins up a spot ahead of Ohio State. The Jays still trending in the right direction, and I’m not feeling like their game against Ohio State would be even close to the same game at this point.
NZ: A win over Bellarmine and Ohio State’s loss bumps Richmond up to No. 14.
TYE KURTZ ENDS IT!!!#BlueHens complete the EPIC comeback to remain undefeated in CAA play! pic.twitter.com/VCzwVEl4b4
— Delaware Men’s Lacrosse (@DelawareMLAX) March 20, 2021
15 Ohio State (RC) – Hofstra (NZ)
National Poll: Vermont (3-2)
RC: Ohio State did lose to Maryland, who I have higher than Rutgers, and beat Hopkins, but I’m not feeling as high on the Buckeyes right now.
NZ: Idle. Move up because of losses in front of them.
Of note, we suppose:
— UVM Men's Lacrosse (@UVMmlax) March 20, 2021
Fewest goals allowed in a DI win since April 2002.
Good 🤷♂️❓
16 Richmond (RC) – Ohio State (NZ)
National Poll: Navy (2-0)
RC: Richmond beat up on Bellarmine in a SoCon battle, but it has High Point next.
NZ: A loss is a loss, even to No. 3 Maryland. Ohio State is dropping three spots in my weekly rankings.
First days are great…Great first day back together!#GoNavy⚓️🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/NentCkm7H9
— Navy Men's Lacrosse (@navymlax) March 22, 2021
17 Hofstra (RC) – Albany (NZ)
National Poll: Ohio State (2-3)
RC: Hofstra didn’t play, so it stayed at No. 17 for me.
NZ: Beat Binghamton while Penn State and Hopkins lose. That means you move up three spots.
From one 🇨🇦 BC Buckeye to the next.
— Ohio State Men's LAX (@OhioStateMLAX) March 20, 2021
🗣 A message from @LoganSchuss18 as @treleclaire takes over as the all-time leading goal scorer.#GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/gKleeiQgEP
18 Vermont (RC) – Vermont (NZ)
National Poll: Johns Hopkins (2-3)
RC: Vermont had a huge expected win over NJIT in AE action.
NZ: The Catamounts continue to win the games that they should and are slowly climbing.
19 UMBC (RC) – Delaware (NZ)
National Poll: Hofstra (3-1)
RC: UMBC stayed undefeated for another week. It only has Binghamton between it and Vermont/Albany back-to-back to see if UMBC is for real or not.
NZ: Welcome to my weekly rankings! Busting through the bubble, I’m finally convinced Delaware is a top-20 team.
Hey 🥍🌎, we're 𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊❗#RoarWithPride pic.twitter.com/q9FZO8PgdW
— Hofstra Men's Lacrosse (@HofstraMLAX) March 22, 2021
20 Delaware (RC) – Johns Hopkins (NZ)
National Poll: Richmond (3-3)
RC: I still don’t like the early loss to Mount St. Mary’s, but that was six wins ago. Delaware is looking like real CAA contenders behind UMass and Hofstra.
NZ: Perhaps the most frustrating team because of its talent but a ridiculous schedule. I’m still content ranking Hopkins at No. 20 for now.
🕷 continuing to grind and improving each day. #OneRichmond #JoynerFineProperties pic.twitter.com/HGRtxHZ7pK
— Richmond Lacrosse (@SpiderMLAX) March 22, 2021
RC’s Dropped Out:
Penn State (19)
NZ’s Dropped Out:
Penn State (16)
RC’s Next Teams In:
These are the ones with the best shot at making the top 20 in the coming weeks, not in order: Navy, Albany, High Point, LIU.
NZ’s Next Teams In:
Navy, High Point, LIU, RMU, Stony Brook.
RC’s Who Did I Leave Out?
Navy (16)
Navy is still idle. It’s tough to add the Midshipmen into my weekly rankings with just the two games played.
NZ’s Who Did I Leave Out?
Navy (16)